Fire Emblem - Mercenaries of Dawn
by Married to the Dancer
Summary: AU where Micaiah's forces and Daein end up defeating the Greil Mercenaries at Nox Castle, which changes the story up from its original path. Now, Ike and the rest of the Laguz Alliance is on the move, with the Dawn Brigade now on the winning side of the war. Ships: Micaiah/Ranulf, Zihark/Ilyana, Edward/Leonardo, Laura/Aran, etc.
1. Chapter 1

**Fire Emblem – Mercenaries of Dawn **

Summary: AU where Micaiah decides to tell Ike, and they begin on a conquest to the Begnion senators. This is where events begin to change, and a new foe awaits them in this alternate universe. Ships: EdLeo, Zihark/Ilyana, Micaiah/Zelgius, Laura/Aran may change as story goes on…

Chapter 1 – "In the Midst of Battle"

"_By the goddess' will, let my light strike my enemy!_" Micaiah spoke in the ancient tongue as she read the words from her Light tome. A shining, yellow light appeared above the grey, tiger laguz that was attacking one of the Daein generals. Within moments, the beast was on the ground, motionless and dead.

"General Micaiah, the Greil Mercenaries!" A bow paladin charged his horse towards her at full speed to deliver the message from the entrance at Nox Castle. The sage turned towards the knight as the latter told her the new information.

"It's up to us, now…" Micaiah closed her golden eyes, and made a quick prayer to the goddess, in hopes that the battle would turn out smoothly. As she did so, her lovely orange bird Yune flew to her shoulder, resting on her blue cloak. She grasped her Purge tome, holding it to her chest.

She held a staff with a blue orb at the end of it; it was a Physic staff. She cast it into the air, as the orb glowed a faint blue. Micaiah pointed the staff at one of the generals guarding the last line of defense, who had taken some damage from the tiger laguz before. The general looked gratefully towards Micaiah, who simply focused on the battle at hand.

Micaiah looked towards the distance, and noticed a change of colors; the Greil Mercenaries had arrived.

The ebony-haired boy dressed in a light green spoke the ancient tongue from his own Tornado tome. A strong whirlwind appeared in front of him, killing the Daein archer almost too easily. However, he noticed more of their army falling, as the piles of dead laguz were building up from Nox Castle's lines.

Ranulf, the blue cat laguz, ran next to Ike, showing Soren that the mercenaries were almost in the heat of battle. Perhaps this would make the death count lower. However, as he noticed a blonde-haired boy take out a laguz with a technique similar to Shinon's, doubts began to cloud his mind.

"You need to focus, Soren. Focus on the task at hand; the mercenaries will take care of them." Soren told himself under his breath, as he noticed another Daein soldier nearing Ike. He whispered the words of his Tornado tome once again, as the threatening gusts of wind decimated his opponent. Soren sighed; perhaps this would take longer than usual.

"Edward, look to your left!" Leonardo called out to me, as he held his personal bow, Lughnasadh. I turned to my left to see a cat laguz transform to try and threaten me. I smirked as I gripped Caladbolg. I quickly swung my sword to my side, before having an adrenaline rush. I quickly brought my sword up in the air, raising the cat with me. Then, I swung down rapidly, flipping as I did so, sending the laguz down into the ground. I landed gracefully on my feet, as I brandished my blade.

I turned to check if Leonardo was okay. He nocked another arrow, before jumping into the air, and firing the arrow from there. Leonardo's opponent had been killed nearly instantly from that one arrow. I should've expected as much; no one had ever outmatched Leo, not since he had become a Marksman.

We were nearing the front of the lines, near where the enemy commander was. The snow piled up on the fort itself, as I felt the icy feeling on my skin. However, fighting warmed right up. I looked to see a cat laguz, from the figure's stature and body size. I grabbed my blade, before Leonardo called out to me.

"Edward! Please use the gift I gave you, okay?"

"Why?"

"That's Ranulf. Sothe told us that he was one of the most powerful cat laguz out there, and I don't want you to get hurt too early, okay?"

"Okay, Leo!" I put my golden personal blade back into the sheath around my waist. Then, I pulled out Leonardo's gift to me; one of the rarest gems that was known as the Tempest Blade, a blade so sharp that it could attack from long range. I quickly moved to a distance that was far away enough for the laguz known as Ranulf to not be able to hurt me.

"Charge!" I swung down the sharp blade at a high enough speed that it generated a blade of air. The blade of air reached Ranulf, causing immense damage to him since he was untransformed. Then, I swung down again, and the strong winds generated by the blade brought him to his knees. I heard the blue-haired commander talk to him, as Ranulf exited the battlefield. I smiled; that was one threat that wasn't a problem anymore.

Ike was trying to keep matters under control when it had happened. One of the more esteemed members of the Dawn Brigade, a young boy named Edward, had used his blade to take Ranulf out. It hurt Ike to see the blue cat laguz on the ground, with so many cuts and gashes that Ike could visibly see. Ike had turned to his friend, urging him to go back to camp.

"Ranulf, we can't lose you in this fight. We need you to live, to fight for another day…" Ike tried to explain it to his blue-haired companion. Ranulf simply grinned, as blood trickled down his nose. He got up, albeit weakened.

"You sound like a pink-haired wyvern rider when you say that…" Ranulf joked, and Ike took a sigh of relief. Ranulf knew that the battle was only going to get harder, and Ike realized that it was only Ranulf trying to lighten the mood. It wasn't really anything out of the ordinary. Before he knew it, Ranulf was walking off the battlefield to join up with Tibarn and the others.

Ike readied his holy sword, Ragnell, for when the soldiers would attack him. Most of them stood no chance; however, he was wary of the members of the Dawn Brigade. He had heard that they were some of the most adept fighters since them, the Greil Mercenaries, had defeated Daein in the Mad King's War. He wasn't surprised; some of their former members, Jill and Zihark, namely, were fighting against the laguz. Ike knew of their strength, and he knew he had to be ready.

Mia cut down one soldier with ease with her blade. It was quite simple really; only a few simple jabs, and one killing blow. She whipped her deep purple hair back as she brandished her Wo Dao. The sword essentially infused her with adrenaline, allowing her to fight with a lot more passion and fury.

Her heart was racing; this was the best battle she'd ever been in! She could feel the blood rushing through her veins, her fingers gripping her sword like her life depended on it. Mia knew that, if she made a mistake, she would be cut down; yet, she loved it.

Suddenly, she came into encounter with a soldier that looked different. He was dressed in red garments, brandishing a golden blade that looked almost surreal. If he had used it, Mia could've never figured it out. She readied her own blade, and her gaze met his. When his hazel eyes came into contact with hers, she felt a passionate fire burn brightly within her. Mia could've almost sworn that he had felt the same.

The boy came over to her; he looked young, almost around her age. He unsheathed his golden sword, and she readied hers. Was this a battle where someone could match her skill? Perhaps this was her archrival? But, he wasn't dressed in white…

"You feel it, too, huh?" When he spoke, Mia was almost taken aback. She forgot that this sword-wielder in front of her was a person just like her. She began to search words for a reply, but he said an answer to his own question.

"I can see it in your eyes, and I'm almost betting that you see it in my eyes as well. I'm Edward." Edward had said to her. Mia regained her composure, now able to respond to his questions.

"Mia. We should begin; not much time for a talking in the battlefield, right?" When Mia said this, he simply nodded, and got into a stance. She quickly readied her blade, and got into her own stance. Her Wo Dao glowed in the sunny castle, and Mia swore she never felt anything more passionate than before.

Edward had made the first strike. He swung the golden blade, which he called Caladbolg, down. Mia blocked the treasured sword with her own blade, and quickly tried to get in a swipe to his shoulder. Edward sidestepped out of the way, as he began to attack once more. He swiped the golden blade down at her leg, which he managed to scratch along her knee.

Mia could feel some blood oozing out the cut, but she felt that it wasn't too deep. Her adrenaline was too high for her to feel anything. She sidestepped to the side when Edward tried to close in on her, and swiped at his side. He managed to parry her blade with a simple block, effectively keeping her off balance. Edward rushed in, and flipped, slashing at Mia's arm. This sent her off her feet into the air, where she couldn't manage to land on her feet. She hit the snowy ground of Nox Castle with a hard thud. She got up quickly, as Edward waited for her to.

"You're good. No one's been able to sweep me off my feet."

"Same to you. Although, I already have someone to sweep me off of mine." Edward grinned, and Mia grinned back. They readied their blades once more, and charged at each other.

Oscar parried the other's lance attacks as he tried to recover. The silver knight in front of him managed to recover also. His opponent equipped her silver bow, and nocked an arrow in it. The girl fired the arrow at him. Oscar tried to dodge, but the arrow managed to strike him in the leg. He winced in pain, but knew that his blood would be let out if he tried to remove it.

As he recovered from the arrow, he began to take a closer look at the silver knight in front of him. The girl was dressed in blue armor, and her white horse looked esteemed. She looked so familiar, as if she was some kind of royalty…

"Wait! I know you!" Oscar remarked as the girl in front of her looked taken aback. She had a look of confusion on her face, before understanding. She did not smile, however, and she readied her bloodstained lance for the inevitable fight to come.

"You're the Lady of Marado, Fiona!"

"Indeed, I am. And, to me, you are an opponent which I need to take out." Fiona raised her silver lance, and charged at Oscar on her horse. She tried to stab him with the lance, but Oscar blocked the attack with his spear. He tried to stab Fiona's arm, so he can disarm her weapon, but she managed to break out of the weapon's engagement before it could happen. Fiona moved back a few paces as she readied her bow.

"Impressive…" Fiona whispered under her breath as she nocked an arrow into the silver bow. She fired two arrows at the green-haired knight in front of her. One arrow missed its mark, while the other stuck it in his other leg. She smiled as she noticed him wincing in pain, proving that he was getting hurt. Of course, the battle was not over.

Oscar held his breath, trying not to scream at the pain of the two arrows lodged in both of his legs. The green-clad knight rushed over to the ruler of Marado on his horse, before stopping a few paces away. As opposed to attacking her with close-quarters combat, Oscar held his sharp spear in his hand. He positioned it, and his horse stood up on its hind legs. Using the momentum from the horse, Oscar released the spear at Fiona when the horse slammed its front hooves on the snowy ground. The spear was a deadly shot; it pierced Fiona between the slits of her blue armor, causing her to wince in pain.

The Lady of Marado fell off her horse, before taking out her spear. Oscar wished that he could've helped her, but he knew that the lady was his enemy. He rode off on his horse, while Fiona stayed on the ground, looking up at the stars. She couldn't die; she needed to live to see Daein's dreams come through. With a muster of strength, she plucked the bloodstained spear out of her side, and put a vulnerary on the wound. It was deep; she would need a medic later, but for now, she simply waited.

"Just who are you?" Rolf asked the blonde-haired marksman in front of him as he plucked an arrow. Rolf held the Silencer that Shinon had crafted for him in his hand, and he nocked a sharp arrow. He aimed it at the blonde marksman, who had a special bow that he had never seen before.

"I am someone that is focusing on what I am doing, and that is to take you out." Rolf's opponent had said ever so emotionlessly. The marksman nocked a handcrafted arrow into the bow, and fired it at overwhelming speed. Rolf barely had enough time to sidestep, as the arrow whizzed by a vital point of his body. As he realized what he was going up against, Rolf felt his nerves tingle.

"I can't be scared, not right now. This is time to be serious." Rolf told himself as he aimed at the blonde. He let go of the arrow, sending it flying at the other. The blond sidestepped the arrow, and he jumped into the air. The blond aimed at the green-haired marksman, and fired the arrow at him. As Rolf saw its different shade, he realized that it was a poisoned arrow designed to make a person fall asleep. Rolf had a few of those himself. Rolf tried to sidestep, but he was pushed out of the way onto the ground of Nox Castle.

As he recovered from his fall, he noticed who had pushed him out of the way. Lying on the ground was his red-haired teacher, Shinon. The sarcastic marksman had taken the arrow for Rolf, but the latter knew that it hadn't hit him in his vital points. Rolf saw the arrow sticking out of his side, as he realized that Shinon was now asleep.

Wordlessly, Rolf nocked an arrow to the Silencer. He carefully pulled the arrow back, and breathed slowly. No doubt, no hesitation. He released the arrow, as it flew out at the blond marksman. It had managed to scratch his unprotected shoulder as the former tried to sidestep.

Leonardo sighed, realizing that the marksman on the other side was equal to him in skill. Leonardo needed to be smart, and he needed to be strong…for him. Leonardo looked to his side and saw Edward dueling a girl with purple hair quite furiously. He knew that he had to be there for him, regardless of the outcome of this battle or not.

"May the goddess forgive me…" Leonardo spoke as he nocked another poisonous arrow. He threw the arrow up into the air, perfectly circular. The green-haired boy in front of him realized this, and was prepared to sidestep this. Leonardo grabbed the arrow, and nocked it in the air, aiming at the boy. However, instead of releasing immediately, he saw that the other marksman had begun to sidestep. In those few milliseconds, Leonardo released the arrow.

The toxic arrow flew past many other battles that were going on. A hawk laguz was tearing apart a Daein soldier, while a general was fighting a tiger laguz. The black arrow whizzed by at blurred speed. The arrow made contact with the green-haired marksman as he realized what had just happened.

Rolf's mind couldn't calculate what was going on in the events that had just happened. He fell to the ground, as he noticed the arrow sticking inside of his exposed leg. Rolf's vision was starting to blacken, and his eyes began to close. The green-haired marksman saw out of the corner of his eye the blond marksman leave to fight another battle. Rolf let go of the Silencer, as he laid on the ground, unconscious, right next to his master.

Boyd swung his tomahawk at the other reaver, who simply sidestepped. Boyd couldn't tell why the other was so fast; the other man in front of him looked older than the others. The brunette in front of him clutched his personal axe closed to him, and went in for a strike.

Nolan swung Tarvos at the other, trying to get a hit in. He managed to connect the axe at the other's shoulder, as the battle raged on. Nolan looked to his side, and saw Leonardo taking down two of the mercenaries' marksman. He grinned, before unleashing another crashing blow on Boyd, and the two were engaged in a battle of willpower.

Boyd's axe was blocking Tarvos, and Nolan knew he had to do something quickly. He quickly jumped out of the way to avoid doing any other blows. Nolan's mind began to formulate out some plans of action, but nothing controlled his brain more than instinct at the moment. Nolan sidestepped, and swung his axe down at Boyd. This ended up scratching his shoulder, albeit not very deeply. Boyd felt some blood oozing out of him, but he ignored it; right now, he had to focus on the task at hand.

Boyd decided to take a different approach, and took out a hand axe. From a few paces back, he threw the axe, managing to scratch Nolan's left arm. Nolan winced in pain, but threw a Tomahawk at the other reaver. The golden throwing axe sailed by Boyd, and managed to incapacitate him as it hit his wrist.

Boyd dropped the axe, feeling the pain in his right arm. He couldn't even hold his axe right, and he was readily sure that his wrist was broken. Boyd simply laid on the ground, and stared into the blue sky, praying for a miracle.

"_Let the goddess hear my words, and strike down the heavenly light on my opponent!_" Laura chanted the words of her Ellight tome. The female saint was in a duel of magic against an orange-haired saint, who wielded a stronger form of her magic. Rhys casted another Shine spell, trying to attack the powerful saint. Laura dodged, sidestepping quickly.

Laura held her Ellight tome close to her chest, as she turned to her side. She noticed Aran fending off some laguz, and stayed close to him. Whenever she was near him, she felt stronger. Secretly, she had hoped that she would marry Aran, despite being childhood friends.

"_With these words, I shall strike down the lights of the corona on my opponent!" _Laura felt a passion, and her tome began to glow a faint red. A light red orb started to glow in front of her, and Laura felt her attack getting stronger. The light gathered in a ball above the orange-haired spellcaster, and descended with forceful, but lovely grace. When the attack made contact, the orange-haired person wasn't standing. He was on the ground, lying unconscious. Laura thought it best not to attack any further, since the person she had just defeated looked so weak and frail.

Before she went, Laura took one last look at the Saint she had just outcast. Looking own, she saw that the orange-haired tomewielder was shivering. Knowing it was against her better judgment, but still following her moral conscience, Laura equipped herself with a Heal staff. The red orb glowed a faint red, and the orange-haired saint began to look better. Content, she ran off to help with the others.

Soren looked at his opponent, not paying attention to any of the other events happening around him. He didn't pay attention to the freezing temperature, or his comrades fighting the Dawn Brigade. All he saw in his vision at the moment was the green-haired thief that was now all grown up. Soren gripped his tome wordlessly, completely willing to kill his enemy without hesitation if he was in Ike's way.

Sothe looked back at Soren's cold, dark eyes. He felt his gaze piercing his soul, as if trying to convert him without any words. Through every possibility, Sothe had thought of this; but in all of them, he couldn't betray the girl who had trusted him. The green-haired rogue knew that if he had joined with the mercenaries once more, Micaiah was in severe danger. Sothe gripped his Stiletto with a firm hand.

"_Let the winds of my words consume my foe!" _Soren chanted the words from his tome. A whirlwind of green visible wind began to form where Sothe was, and began to increase in speed and damage. However, Sothe sidestepped, and moved in to start his attack.

Sothe raised his dagger, and tried to slice at Soren's book to prevent the latter from chanting spells, essentially incapacitating him. However, Soren jumped back, trying to keep the distance between him and the rogue. Sothe rushed forward, and equipped one of his silver knives. He gripped the hilt of the throwing weapon, and threw it at Soren's legs. The silver knife sliced across his knee, and Soren winced in pain slightly before focusing on defeating Sothe.

"Why are you doing this? You know, it's pointless to resist."

"Like you, Soren, I have someone I need to protect."

"The person you're trying to protect is in danger by getting involved in the first place." Soren said simply, as he unleashed another spell on Sothe. This time, his Tornado managed to cut Sothe's torso, causing visible bleeding to occur. However, this did not deter Sothe from throwing one more knife at the tomewielder.

As Sothe get up, he hid one of his silver knives in his scarf. When Soren turned away to focus his attention on the rest of the battle, Sothe revealed the knife, and threw it at blurred speeds. The knife whizzed by every single laguz in its path, before hitting its target. Soren turned, only to see the knife punctured in his abdomen. Soren felt blood begin to drip out of the wound he had just gotten. However, he knew that if he removed the knife, the blood would leak out in greater quantities.

Ike turned to his chief tactician, and noticed his condition. He rushed over with Ragnell in hand, and helped Soren out by carrying the green-clad archsage over to his side. Ike quickly demanded that Soren help with Ranulf near the front, and the archsage was in no position to deny. Slowly, Soren trudged over near the front of Castle Nox to deal with the opposing forces.

Gatrie never knew how powerful the opposing forces were. He figured that the Daein army had gotten quite weak, since their liberation was only recent. The blue-clad marshall gripped his lance, and trudged forward only to meet a fellow marshall in his way.

"Wait, you're Brom's daughter!" Gatrie remarked as soon as he got a view of Meg's face. The girl dressed in light orange armor didn't respond; she had gripped her sword and was ready to fight.

"My father would be proud to know I've made my own decisions. I'm not going to let myself get fooled into joining you!" Meg responded, gripping her Killing Edge. Gatrie didn't know how to react to this; simply, he let go of his lance, and he heard the clatter of the silver meeting the castle grounds.

"Pick up your weapon and fight!" Meg commanded, but Gatrie stayed silent. Meg took this as a sign of defeat; she began to trudge forward in her large armor. Meg felt a surge of energy within her, as she began to slash at Gatrie with such force. Gatrie felt each piece of his blue armor fall and crack as it met the castle grounds. Finally, when Meg slashed at him one last time, Gatrie fell to the floor, armorless. Gatrie trudged off the battlefield wordlessly, knowing that he'd have to tell Brom the news of his daughter.

"Ike, we're in serious trouble here. The laguz forces had no idea that the Daein forces were this powerful, and laguz are getting slaughtered by them!" Tibarn had flown in from the front of the fort. He flapped his wings, keeping above the air as he explained to Ike what their current situation was.

"My fleet of hawks is dead, and it will take weeks to replace the fleet with newer hawks. Even then, the next set of hawks I get won't be as good as the old ones." Tibarn commented to the listening Ike, who only looked upon the bodies of all the dead laguz and Daein soldiers. After looking, Ike turned to Tibarn and began to report something even scarier.

"We had no idea that Micaiah and the Dawn Brigade was this powerful…"

"Well, they did liberate Daein, Ike."

"Yes, but I never thought they would crush us like this!"

"What happened, Ike? You sound distressed."

"My own mercenaries have been defeated, Tibarn. Ranulf was defeated before he could even transform. Toxic arrows have knocked out both Shinon and Rolf from the Dawn Brigade's marksman. Sothe hurt Soren enough to incapacitate him. Their reaver defeated Boyd. Rhys was defeated by their saint, and is now suffering from an illness. Gatrie's armor has broken, and he's incapacitated as well. Mia's still fighting the Trueblade who took out Ranulf. Oscar's incapacitated by the arrows in his legs, so I told him to stay back. The only Greil Mercenaries still in combat right now are Mia, Titania, Mist, and I…" Ike stated. When Tibarn heard this, his eyes went wide; he had never heard of Ike losing, and realized that the situation was even more desperate than before. Ike faced forward, and prayed to Ashera that the battle ahead would be easier despite the tides not being in their favor.


	2. Chapter 2

"Ike, we have to do something before they end up slaughtering us." Tibarn stated, with his large, brown wings flapping as he floated above the ground. The Phoenician King was awaiting the blue-haired mercenary's answer to his statement, but Ike simply faced forward, looking at his surroundings.

Ike turned his head to see a Daein myrmidon slay a cat laguz, while a ballistician fired an effective shot at a hawk laguz, clipping its wings. He saw Mia engaged in a close duel against the Dawn Brigade's red-clad trueblade named Edward. Now, as he turned his head to the side, he saw Titania take on Zihark, one of his own former allies.

Ike sighed, but knew he had to keep his head held high. If they had conquered Nox Castle, they would be able to finish the war quickly, and less blood would be shed upon the already-soiled grounds of Daein. He held the golden blade of Ragnell in his hand, ready to cut down any person that wished to cross him. However, he just couldn't help having the feeling of doubt in the back of his mind.

* * *

Edward swung Caladbolg at Mia's shoulder, managing to scratch it slightly. However, Mia never felt a thing; her adrenaline was at a high from this battle, and all she focused on was winning this battle, even if she would be cut down after it. She gripped Wo Dao, and swiped at Edward's arm. Edward just barely dodged the blow, as he parried. This left Mia open, and in that moment, Edward made his move.

Edward felt a green energy overtake his blade, and he made various movements with it before finally facing it towards Mia. He swiped his blade at her, and did it again. In his third slash, he turned, allowing him to strike at Mia swiped it. Then, he flipped, slicing Mia upward, before rushing in for his final blow. He rushed forward to swipe at her, as she fell to the ground with tattered clothes and blood.

Mia felt her heart start to race, and pain start to fill every corner of her body. She looked up to the sky as blood flowed out of every cut, while the opponent that had defeated her simply walked away, albeit sored. Mia looked up at the clear blue sky, and doubts began to fill her mind about whether this was worth all of the pain and the bloodshed that was happening. She closed her eyes, but could feel a person pick her up. She felt her body being moved to the back, and, when she opened her eyes, she saw Rhys holding a Mend staff, above her, despite him being visibly sick. Mia felt some of the pain get soothed by Rhys' powerful staff magic. She noticed all of her fellow mercenaries there, with injuries just as bad as hers, if not, worse. Mia simply sighed, and closed her eyes once more.

* * *

"You fought with us last time, Zihark! How could you betray us, and kill laguz instead?" Titania yelled at the silver-haired trueblade in front of her. Zihark paid no heed to her words; he blocked them out, and only focused on taking out one of the Greil Mercenaries' top gold knights. He swung his Killing Edge at her leg, managing to slice it through the chinks of her armor. The red-haired gold knight winced in pain, but gripped her Tomahawk. She ran away, and threw the golden throwing axe at Zihark, while the latter sidestepped to avoid the powerful axe.

Titania felt the cold wind and the low temperatures of Nox Castle increase their effect on her. Her pale face felt numb, but she didn't focus on her own personal well-being. Her main goal at the moment was to defeat the Daein opposition here, and to defeat the Begnion Senators. She felt her pulse rise, and her adrenaline increase with the rush of battle, and she hurried over to Zihark; this moment of restlessness would be her downfall.

Zihark took the moment when he had the chance to; he sidestepped Titania's attack by rolling to the side. While he rolled, he managed to get a clean slice on Titania's leg, causing some blood to fall to the snowy ground. As Titania winced in pain, Zihark rolled behind her horse, and sliced at her back, albeit not deeply. Finally, he rolled to her other side, and sliced at her left hand, causing her to let go of the horse, and to fall off. The red-haired gold knight was now on the ground, horseless, and powerless. Her axe was at her side, and Zihark kicked it away, before leaving the girl there. Wordlessly, he left the battlefield as he noticed the large absence of Greil Mercenaries.

* * *

"Ike, the situation is worse than we thought-"

"My friends are getting healed by Rhys right now, Tibarn. I know how bad it is. Their marksman just shot Mist, while Mia and Titania were defeated by their trueblades. Rhys, who has come down with a fever, is just healing all of my other mercenaries. We can't win against them, Tibarn. The Dawn Brigade are too powerful. We underestimated Micaiah's forces." Ike interrupted Tibarn. A hawk laguz was just killed in front of them; its hazel feathers fell to the snowy ground, before being covered by the body of a dead cat laguz. The numbers of Ike's army were falling fast, and Ike needed to do something quickly in order to secure victory. The blue-haired mercenary tried to remember the various tactics that Soren had tried to teach him, but, in the rush of this battle, he couldn't think quick enough.

* * *

Micaiah noticed the last of the Greil Mercenaries fall to the Dawn Brigade, and she smiled a relieved smile. Her golden eyes eyed the battlefield, noticing the laguz being cut down left and right. She felt a pang of guilt and remorse for the slaughtered laguz, and she knew that her friends did as well; the blood pact had taken too many lives as it is. The silver-haired maiden began to think about Pelleas' decision to end his own life. Fortunately, Micaiah had convinced Pelleas to try and find Lekain, and destroy the blood pact by killing him.

"General Micaiah, the forces of the laguz alliance are weakening! The Greil Mercenaries have been defeated, except for their commander, Ike." The bow paladin from before told her, before rushing off to kill more laguz. Micaiah gave out a sigh of relief, as she walked closer to the ledge of the battle, gripping her Purge tome. She knew that she had to be the one to finish the battle; Edward, Leonardo, Aran, Laura, Jill, Zihark, Meg, Fiona, and the others would not be able to stop him.

Ike noticed Micaiah staring at him, with a tome in her hand. His eyes widened as he realized what was about to happen, and he began to call out to Micaiah.

"Micaiah, we have to talk. This is insane."

"What's insane about a person fighting for their country?"

"There's got to be something we can do! Let us help, please!"

"Why would you want to help us, after everything we've done? No, after everything I've done…"

"We know you don't want this fight to go any further. Enough lives have been taken. Can't there be a way for us to avoid it?" Micaiah thought about Ike's question for a moment. A deathly silence fell between the two as the battle raged on besides them. She thought about all the lives she had taken for Daein's cause, and all of the blood that had been shed because of her. Micaiah thought about Pelleas, Sothe, and all of her friends. With her mind cleared, she answered with certainty.

"No, I'm afraid there isn't. We've done too much to give up everything now, and my friends and I have sacrificed too much to give up here and now."

"But, Micaiah…!"

"I'm so sorry, Ike…Sothe always knew you were a good person, and this just makes what I have to do even harder. May the Goddess forgive me…"

"Micaiah…" With these final words, Micaiah knew that the conversation between them was over. She gripped the Purge tome tightly in her hands, and began to speak the enchanted words that would, hopefully, bring her opponent down. Micaiah closed her eyes, focusing all of her energy into one place. She opened her golden eyes, and stared at Ike, who was her target. Micaiah felt a surge of energy rush through her, signifying that this attack would be at least three times as powerful than normal.

"_Light of Life! Shine a ray upon my path and strike my enemy!__" _Micaiah spoke in the ancient tongue as the spell was cast. Micaiah's hands moved, creating magic circles around her, showing the power of the attack. A circle of light surrounded the blue-haired mercenary, who looked around, knowing that there was no way out of it. He accepted his fate, despite knowing that the Laguz Alliance depended on him. All of those lives lost were for nothing...all of the laguz lying in their own pools of blood were for naught. The light engulfed him, and Ike knew he was going to lose…

Until, he felt a person push him out of the way of the attack. He felt himself get pushed upon the snowy ground, and he turned around quickly to see the person that had pushed him. He was horrified; the bloodstained feathers on the ground, and the non-moving hawk figure pointed to one person only. Tibarn had pushed him out of the way, and took the brutal attack directly. The blue-haired swordsman rushed over to the hawk king, but couldn't make it in time; Tibarn's hawk form changed him back into untransformed form, as he was on hisknees. The power of the attack almost killed him, and he was just barely alive. He saw Tibarn turn towards him, and the latter spoke words.

"Go, Ike, go! You need...to gather your friends and escape..."Tibarn's words were powerful at first,but slowly lost their energy as he became weaker and weaker. Ike held a hand out towards Tibarn, but the Hawk King was already surrounded by Daein soldiers. He didn't care; Ike ran towards the Hawk King, before hearing a voice behind him.

"Ike, we need to move, now! Our forces at the front of the castle have lost! Tibarn will be fine, okay?!" Soren called out behind him. Knowing that it was for the greater good, Ike turned to see one last look of the beaten Hawk King, and ran in the opposite direction, following Soren and the other mercenaries.

As they ran, Ike knew that the battle had been a complete failure. His team was now in a bad position, and so many laguz lives had been slaughtered without reward. In addition, the Daein forces had captured Tibarn, one of their strongest men,, and he didn't know what the soldiers would do to him. He had now been exposed to the forces of Micaiah and the Dawn Brigade, and he realized that the tides had turned. All of their previous victories? That didn't matter, since they weren't able to take Nox Castle, and take down the heart of the Daein forces. With a feeling of failure and despair in his heart, Ike left the snow-filled Nox Castle with the rest of the Greil Mercenaries, and the Laguz Alliance.

* * *

Micaiah rejoiced, as she saw the Greil Mercenaries leave the battlefield as a tired wreck. The rest of the laguz didn't pose a threat to her, and, as a bonus, the Hawk King was disabled, and couldn't assist the Laguz Alliance. She could only pray to the goddess that this would satisfy the Begnion senate enough to not activate the blood pact. So many lives had been lost over that one piece of parchment.

Suddenly, Micaiah heard a noise. It seemed so familiar, and she turned to see a large black object flying toward them at hypersonic speed. As Micaiah focused her eyes on the image, she saw that it wasn't just an object; it was a dragon, and a black dragon at that, which were the most powerful. She saw the dragon open its mouth, and exhale, releasing a light-colored breath. The breath was exhaled in the direction of the laguz, as they were decimated by the dragon's sheer power. Micaiah saw the laguz fall in all directions, and the black dragon descend near her to the point where it was right in front of her. Micaiah would've been lying if she believed that she wasn't afraid. However, instead of attacking her, the dragon began to glow a faint white color, and changed into the form of a human being. Micaiah recognized the figure as soon as the turquoise hair and the purple outfit showed; it was Kurth!

Micaiah rushed over to hug her old friend, which she had rescued from Jarrad's prison. Now, the moment seemed so long ago. Kurth returned the hug, and explained the situation as to how he knew when to come as the battle quickly finished.

"Goldoa caught word of your conflict with the Begnion senate, but I knew it wouldn't be like you to hurt laguz on purpose. I wanted to make sure that you were okay, Micaiah, and I'm here to help."

"But, Kurth...what about your father?"When Micaiah asked him the question, Kurth blushed slightly, before turning away shyly.

"My father doesn't know I'm here. Micaiah, why are you helping the Senate? I'm almost certain that it's not on your accord." Micaiah looked at the ground before answering. Since Kurth had already told her that he was on her side, she felt that he had the right to know, as the Senate wouldn't invoke the blood pact then.

"Pelleas, the new king of Daein, was tricked by Lekain, one of the Begnion senators. He signed a blood pact unknowingly, so we have to bend to the will of the Senate unless we want Daein's citizens to die...I would've never even participated in this war had this not happened…" Micaiah felt her eyes start to water, and she began to think about all of the innocent laguz that she had killed simply because of the blood pact. Micaiah turned to the battlefield, now deathly silent as she noticed that the fighting had ceased as the laguz were all slaughtered. She began to cry, releasing all of her emotions, and the effects that the war was taking on her. Kurth noticed this, and comforted her, wrapping his arms around her as he enveloped her into a loving embrace.

"I'm so sorry, Micaiah…I'll make sure that the Senate won't harm Daein…" Kurth whispered words of reassurance into the maiden's ears. Micaiah thanked him for his help before directing him to the inside of Nox Castle, so that she could take a body count of the Daein soldiers. Suddenly, she heard a noise, and turned to the source of what sounded like Rescue staff being used.

Micaiah broke into a soft smile, needing this very moment to happen. Right in front of her was her savior on that horrible night when Jarrod tried to kill her. In front of her was the man that had protected her, offering support of the utmost importance when the final attack on the Begnion Occupational Army had arrived, the man that helped her with the Senate's first order to assist them in the war. In front of her was the Black Knight.

"My Maiden...I had heard you have been in involved with the war between the Laguz Alliance and the Begnion Senate. Why did you choose to become involved with this war?"

"Our king, Pelleas...he was tricked into signing a blood pact with Senator Lekain of Begnion. If we don't follow his orders, he will invoke the blood pact against Daein, and the citizens will die until Daein becomes extinct…" When Micaiah told the Black Knight these words, she felt a wave of comfort wash over her, as if all of her troubles went away at least just for the moment. The Black Knight looked over at the bloody battlefield, where there were bodies of both Daein soldiers and laguz. Then, he turned back to Micaiah.

"I've seen the blood pact be invoked before, during Mad King Ashnard's reign. He ended up tricking his father into signing a blood pact, and then immediately invoked the curse so that he could receive the throne next in line. He personally killed off his own father, and then he was crowned the 13th King of Daein…" The Black Knight spoke ominously. Then, he turned to the castle, before looking back at her.

"You did well defending this castle today, but I can see that you struggle with your feelings about being a part of this battle. Do not worry, my maiden, I will be here to protect you." The Black Knight said, and Micaiah smiled. Then, the two walked into castle, side-by-side.

Inside the castle, Nailah, and Rafiel were waiting for them. Micaiah had seen them on the battlefield rush to them, and knew that, by the way that they were rushing towards her, they needed to speak with her.

"Micaiah...why are you fighting this war?" The Queen of Hatari asked her, with Rafiel beside her. She had her arms at her sides, wondering why Micaiah, whom she had known was kind to the laguz, was taking part in a war against them.

"The Begnion Senate, namely Lekain...they tricked us into signing a blood pact. If we don't comply, the Senate will invoke the curse, and the Daein citizens will die. I've already convinced Pelleas not to end his life for the sake of Daein. We've won the battle for now, so the Senate will be satisfied…" Micaiah explained to the Wolf Queen. Nailah looked at Rafiel, who nodded as if Nailah asked him something wordlessly. Then, Nailah turned back to Micaiah.

"Micaiah, Rafiel and I will assist your cause as a way to repay the debt we owe to you for helping Rafiel. We'll make sure that the Senate is pleased, and then, we'll eventually figure out a way to kill Lekain, and to destroy the blood pact."Nailah smiled at the Maiden of Dawn. Micaiah let out a sigh of relief, knowing that she was in good hands with Nailah, Kurth, and the Black Knight supporting them, not to mention the fact that the Hawk King, one of their most powerful opponents, was subdued.

* * *

The Greil Mercenaries were back at camp near Palmeni Temple. Ike recognized the area; it was the temple that his mother had served at to worship Ashera. The temple had been long abandoned since Mad King Ashnard's reign. At some points, Ike swore he saw his mother's shadow, walking up to his late father to kiss him. However, Ike knew that their time had passed. Regardless of how it happened, Ike knew that the goddess willed it to happen; to wish anything else would be to against their word.

Ike could still see Tibarn getting captured, all weakened from the critical Purge attack, to the point where he untransformed. He remembered seeing the blood pool from his knees, and his tattered clothing. His mind instantly flashed back to his friends getting defeated. He saw the marksman take out Shinon and Rolf, as well as Mia losing to their trueblade. Ike saw former allies fighting against him, as Zihark had taken out Titania. He saw all of the laguz that had attacked fall to their strong defenses, to the point where the tides had turned against them.

Empress Sanaki had heard of the battle's result, and awaited them with Sigrun and Tanith at her side. The apostle held her Cymbeline tome in hand, while Sigrun and Tanith held their lances. Wordlessly, Ike laid down camp for the night, tending to his wounded mercenaries, and the remaining Laguz Alliance. Sanaki noticed this, and told her Seraph Knights to try and help Ike. This became easier when Rhys awakened, as he was used for his staff abilities.

Suddenly, Ike heard a flapping sound in the distance, as well as sounds of horse. He turned to his north from where he was standing, and saw the unmistakable white of the Crimean Pegasus Knights, as well as the Crimean Royal Knights. He felt a wave of relief wash over him, as if all his troubles worried away, when he saw Elincia, Astrid, Kieran, Makalov, Marcia, and Geoffrey leading the Crimean Royal Knights as they approached the camp. Ike felt a bit safer now that the Royal Knights and the Crimean Pegasus Knights were with them.

"Ike, Elincia has arrived to join our forces." Soren informed him, coming up behind him unexpectedly. Ike jumped a bit at the voice before turning to his tactician. The tactician noted the patterns of the Crimean Royal Knights, noticing the excellent form and posture that each of their knights was in. They were in a perfect battle formation, ready to tackle on any opponent that wasn't too strong for them.

When Elincia arrived, she was greeted with praise and gratefulness for choosing to assist them. All of the Royal Knights met up with the Greil Mercenaries, and Sanaki was thankful for the fact that Elincia brought healers to assist Rhys and her Seraph Knights. Within only a few hours, the Laguz Alliance was healed up enough to rest.

_Perhaps we have a chance, then. _Soren thought to himself, reviewing today's failed battle plans. He kicked the books away, and slammed the table he was working on with his fist; how could his plans fail so horribly? It was his fault; hundreds of laguz died without any reward or advantages to reap from it. Now, the Daein Army could start hunting them, and the Laguz Alliance couldn't do a thing to stop them with the forces being as strong as they were. Of course, the facts had changed since Elincia's army had met up with them. Perhaps the Crimean Royal Knights and the Laguz Alliance's combined forces would be enough to overpower the Daein side, but this was too much to hope for; Soren never worked dealing with chance. He had to have a set plan for everything that he did, regardless of how miniscule it was. However, this was war; his battle plans needed to be perfect, otherwise they would cause the deaths of hundreds of laguz and possibly even Ike, as they did today.

"Damn it all…" Soren whispered to himself, sitting down in his archsage garb. Giving up for the night, he decided to rest. It would only be detrimental if he formed horrible battle plans due to his lack of sleep, and it would definitely be counterproductive to do that under the circumstances that they were currently in. As he lay on the ground of his tent, he looked up, wondering how this war would end. Initially, there was not a doubt in his mind that the Greil Mercenaries and the Laguz Alliance could destroy the Daein Army; they had done it in the past. However, with the new general Micaiah, things got complicated, and now he was having doubts about the chances of victory. He remembered Sothe's emotionless state as they were fighting, as he was so intent on protecting the Silver-haired Maiden. Was it worth it to betray his friends over? Soren couldn't tell; he was never good at understanding emotions that people sometimes felt. Within a few minutes, however, while he was thinking about this, he fell asleep wordlessly, dreaming about the victory that would hopefully come to them.

* * *

"I'm so happy that you came…" Ike admitted to Elincia, while the latter was meeting with him in his tent. He let out a sigh of relief, knowing that the war would be at least a bit easier than what had happened today. Ike cursed under his breath; how could he underestimate the strength of the Daein Army, to the point where the Greil Mercenaries were taken out? Granted, they had defeated Daein in the Mad King's War, but the soldiers now were different; they weren't following out of fear, they were following out of their own inspiration by Micaiah, who they called their "Silver-haired Maiden." Was she truly that influential that the Daein soldiers would rally behind her?

"Ike, do not worry anymore. The Crimean Royal Knights have arrived, and I've left Lucia in charge of Crimea for the time being. I don't think any of the nobles will think of crossing her anymore, especially with what had happened before." Elincia said, closing her eyes. She remembered the feelings of exasperation and relief when the Greil Mercenaries had saved Lucia from getting executed by the Crimean Rebels. Thankfully, they had arrived just in time to save her, and to keep Duke Ludveck of Felirae in jail. She had spilled so much Crimean blood, but the results of the Crimean prosperity were worth it.

"You sound so serious. What happened, Elincia?" Ike said, turning to the Crimean Queen. She looked away from him, clearly harboring bad news to come along with her visit. However, inside of her mind, she mustered up the courage to tell the blue-haired mercenary, and faced him.

"The Queen of Hatari, Nailah, Rafiel, the prince of Goldoa, Kurthnaga, and the Black Knight have been seen approaching the Daein Castle, with the intent of helping them. I remember Soren telling me of his return when the Greil Mercenaries first collided with the Dawn Brigade at Ribahn River. Even with our help, the war's only going to get more bloodier, and Lehran's Medallion has been burning a radiant blue." Ike turned to her, shocked at the news. This was possibly the worst outcome to appear out of the situation. Even with the Crimean army's help, the Daein Army had the assistance of the wolf laguz, a heron prince, and a damned dragon! Ike let out a sigh of annoyance, realizing now that the bloodshed would only get much worse. He also realized that the Black Knight and him were fated to meet once more at opposing sides, and that a battle between them would be inevitable. Ragnell and Alondite were fated to cross blades once again, as sisters would.

"What's our plan of action, Elincia? The odds are overwhelmingly against us. The Black Knight, Kurthnaga, and Nailah are all against us, and they're all very powerful on their own. Combine that with the Daein Army's forces, and we've got little to no chance." When he said this, he was met with a swift smack across his face. Turning back, and feeling his now red cheek, he raised his eyebrows in suspicion of what had happened.

"The Ike I know that won the Mad King's War had never given up, regardless of the situations that he had experienced. When your father died, did you give up? No, you took the reins of the Greil Mercenaries, regardless of what happened afterwards with the members. No matter how cruel it got in the war, you ended up winning because of your persistence, and I, as the Queen of Crimea, shall not let you give up so easily." Elincia said firmly, crossing her arms as she did so. Ike was shocked, but this was just the motivation he needed; he felt a newly invigorated spirit running through him. The war was not over because some measly battle was lost; the war was over when the leader of the Greil Mercenaries, he, was dead on the floor, with everyone else dead around him. Ike mentally slapped himself for even thinking of the idea to give up on the war, and knew that, regardless of what happened, he needed to push on through. He gripped Ragnell, which was in his tent.

"Thank you, Elincia. I was just acting childish before."

"Remember, Ike; all of us, the Greil Mercenaries, the Crimean Royal Knights… we're all behind you, no matter what you do. The Daein Army may kill us, but your vigor will lead us through to the eventual victory." Elincia said. Then, without facing him, she turned and left the tent, to rest on her own. Ike rubbed the back of his neck, wondering how Crimea was so lucky to have such a queen.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 - A Light In The Dark

"Micaiah, what are we going to do about the Laguz Alliance? If the Senate sees us as passive when they're at their weakest, they're going to invoke the blood pact." Pelleas remarked, in a war meeting with Micaiah, Sothe, and Nailah. He eyed the map of Tellius, focusing on the Daein areas that the Laguz Alliance had incapacitated. Then, he tried to imagine the closest place that the Laguz Alliance would go to when they were retreating.

"Don't bother finding them, Pelleas. I know where they are." Sothe said, still thinking about Soren's word about betraying the Greil Mercenaries. The green-haired rogue sauntered over to the battle map, and put a finger on a single point; Palmeni Temple.

"Why would they stay at Palmeni Temple?"

"Pelleas, they would stay there because it holds some sentimental value to them. It was the site where Ike's mother, Elena, worked as a priest for the goddess Ashera. It was also where we found the cellar that contained the late Lillia, who was a heron." Sothe explained emotionlessly, stabbing a knife through the air straight through Palmeni Temple. Micaiah looked around at all of the faces in the room, but focused on Sothe. She could feel his thoughts of not being motivated enough to actually fight the mercenaries, as well as his desire of not fighting against his former friends. She moved over to where he was, and put a hand on his bare shoulder. Sothe turned to her, before cursing under his breath. Then, he left the tent where the meeting was taken place, going off to Ashera knows where. However, Micaiah stayed with the war meeting, understanding that this was where she was needed most.

"We should strike Palmeni Temple as quickly as possible, so that we can please the Senate and get them to not invoke the pact." Pelleas remarked, looking at Sothe's dagger through the thin sheet piece of paper. Nailah nodded her head before pitching in her own ideas.

"My wolves can assist in defending Daein while the main force is away. No one will get through them." Nailah grinned, but, on the inside, she felt bad about attacking the side that Reyson, Rafiel's brother, was on. She walked out of the tent, needing to send a message to Hatarians about needing to fight. She knew that this would disrupt the beorc-laguz relations, but also knew that her friends needed assistance, and that she needed to help them in any way she could. Now, only Micaiah and Pelleas remained in the room.

"I will assist you in our siege of Palmeni Temple." Pelleas said, with Micaiah's eyes widening at the thought of her king being on the battlefield. As a result, she tried to tell him to stay.

"King Pelleas, I can't ask you to do that! If you die, what will happen to Daein's rule?"

"Micaiah… the Daein citizens… they don't look up to me. They still look up to you; no matter what speeches I give. You are the Maiden of Dawn, the symbol of Daein's freedom and hope, and you can lead this nation better than I ever could…" As Pelleas kept on speaking, Micaiah's mouth was wide open in shock. She couldn't understand what Pelleas was saying; had he not had the confidence to rule as a leader to the Daein people?

"After this war, Micaiah… I'm going to resign. It's my fault that the blood pact was signed, and that we had gotten involved in the first place. The blood of all those innocent laguz is on my hands…" Pelleas firmly said, and Micaiah, reading his mind, could tell that he was not joking on the matter. He truly didn't have the confidence to rule, and he accepted the fact that his blunder cost the lives of so many Daein soldiers and laguz.

"I'm going to pass my kingship to you, Micaiah. You are going to be the Queen of Daein after this war…" Pelleas said, before leaving the tent and Micaiah all alone before the latter could respond to this news. Micaiah was so shocked at all the events that had just happened; was King Pelleas truly going to resign his position? She understood his reasons, but she still couldn't believe the news. Micaiah looked at the battle map, looking at the dagger that was cut across Palmeni Temple. She still remembered Palmeni Temple, even though it had been all those years ago when she had moved…

* * *

_Micaiah looked back around her in the dead of night, making sure that no one was there. She entered the temple, careful to avoid the priests and saints dressed in white, armed with powerful light magic. Micaiah managed to avoid all of them, and managed to get upstairs. She found a room with a broken wooden door, entering without too much trouble. Micaiah looked at the room; there was a nice blue carpet, and a warm bed waiting for her. She let out a sigh of relief, and quickly moved over a cabinet to the wooden door, preventing anyone from getting in. Then, she put down her stuff, and got into bed, needing to rest after moving for so long without sleeping._

_In the morning, Micaiah quickly heard the knocking of the priests against the wooden door that was blocked by the cabinet. Knowing that her sleeping time was up, she quickly armed herself with a Light magic tome, and moved towards the door. She took out her white light magic tome, and began to read the incantations of the ancient language_

_"__Let the light blind my enemies, so Ican escape for a brighter future!_ " _Micaiah spoke the words. She could hear the priests scream behind them, as the intense light blinded them. Then, she moved the wooden cabinet, and ran from the room, careful not to step on the priests that were on the floor. Micaiah went down the stairs, only to meet more priests and clerics that were on the ground floor, hearing the commotion. Micaiah huffed, sighing in annoyance. She quickly jumped off the stars, reading the incantations again. This caused a white light to blind the other priests, as she made a quick escape. Before she left however, she ran toward the kitchen, and took a few rolls of bread, as well as some fruit._

_Despite feeling guilty about stealing food from the temple, Micaiah knew she had to survive. She put the food into a bag, and quickly escaped from the kitchen out the window, before running out into the forest near the temple._

* * *

The memory was still fresh in her mind, as she imagined about how she didn't need to steal food from the temples anymore. She knew that she had to survive, but she still felt guilty about doing so. Micaiah sighed, before leaving the war tent, making it empty for the time being. Now, she had to find Sothe, and speak to him about Pelleas' news.

She found him in a nearby forest, sitting down on a tree stump, armed just in case there was an attack. However, Micaiah, and probably Sothe, too, knew that no such assault was going to happen near Nox Castle, since the news had spread about the Greil Mercenaries' defeat at the hands of the Daein Army and the Dawn Brigade.

"I know you don't want to fight them, Sothe…"

"Why should we even fight this war?"

"Because, we have to… the Senate will invoke the blood pact, and the Daein people would _die…_"

"That's on Pelleas' hands, not ours…" Micaiah gulped when he mentioned Pelleas, reminding her about what the king said about his resigning, and Micaiah becoming the new queen of Daein.

"Sothe…" When Micaiah spoke in her quiet voice, Sothe knew that something was wrong. He got up from the tree stump, and stood up, taller than her. Micaiah now knew that she had to tell, since Sothe was pretty good at guessing people that lie.

"Pelleas wants to resign after the war... and he wants me to be the new Queen of Daein… He doesn't want to lead the nation, since he made the blunder with signing the blood pact with the Begnion Senate." Hearing this news, Sothe surprisingly began to lose his cool. He sat down, with his eyes wide open at this news, before smirking. However, he managed to smirk in a moment before Micaiah noticed him.

"Micaiah, I understand Pelleas' reasons of wanting to resign… but, to have you as Queen? That'll make you the prime target of the Begnion senators' assault of the Daein people, and the person that's going to have to fix the mess with the blood pact." Sothe explained what Micaiah already knew, as she thought about her position as queen of Daein with Pelleas' resignation.

"Sothe, regardless of what I say, Pelleas is going to resign, and he wants me to be Queen of Daein." Micaiah explained. For some reason, she felt tears form in the corners of her eyes. Why was she crying? Was this the result of her guilt from killing all of those laguz, using horrible tactics against the Begnion Pegasus Knights, or everything else had done? Maybe, this was the point that had set her off. Micaiah's world was falling apart all around her, and she couldn't find herself anymore.

Sothe opened his arms, waiting for embrace. Micaiah saw the chance and took it, hugging the other tightly, wanting at least some support for what she was going through. Sothe knew that she was so strong for even putting through with this, and knew that even he probably wouldn't be so calm under the pressure. He didn't blame Micaiah for crying; in fact, he was surprised that she was bottling up all of her emotions, when she had always been an advocator for honesty.

"I don't know if I can do this, Sothe."

"Micaiah, you can do this. I've known you longer than anyone else here, and I know that you're so strong. You've managed to pull us through since then, and I know that you're going to get us a way to destroy the blood pact. Lekain will pay for this, and you and I are going to make that happen." Sothe comforted Micaiah, while the latter maintained wordless. Together, they just stayed there for a few hours, whispering thoughts to each other.

* * *

It was time for the assault on Palmeni Temple, since Sothe's gambit proved correct. Pelleas had sent a scout group to check on Palmeni Temple. They ended up successfully spying on the Greil Mercenaries, stating that they were still at the temple, but they had healed relatively quickly. The scouts also mentioned that the Crimean Army was now involved in the war, taking the side of the Laguz Alliance. This meant that the future battle would be just as hard as the last battle at Fort Nox. Micaiah sighed when hearing the news, praying to the goddess that she wouldn't have to kill as many laguz. The Black Knight comforted her, telling her that he would be her shadow, and that, if she was in danger, the Black Knight would keep her safe.

"I will be as close to you as your blue cloak, and, if you need assistance, I will be there for you…" The Black Knight told Micaiah in secret, as they neared Palmeni Temple. Micaiah could see the tower in the distance, as she reminisced about her memories as a former runaway. She closed her eyes, and the same memory flashed back. When she opened them, she knew that the Black Knight wasn't there, as he had a habit of making strange appearances.

Micaiah readied her belongings. She put a couple of concoctions, and vulneraries in her blue cloak, as well as packing her most powerful tomes. When the time had come for the Daein army to strike, Micaiah looked on, grouped with the Dawn Brigade. She marched forward, with her friends at her side, into the temple, prepared to strike.

* * *

"Ike, Ike!" Ranulf ran towards the blue-haired mercenary, who was currently speaking with Soren and Titania about future battle plans. The blue cat laguz immediately interrupted the conversation, alerting them about a certain change that had happened at Palmeni Temple.

"The Daein Army has followed us! _They're in the temple!_" Ranulf yelled at the commander, whose eyes went wide at hearing the news. Ike looked over at Titania and Soren, who prepared for battle. Ike ran across one of the rooms, now facing at the back of the temple where the carpet ended, standing in the same place where Schaeffer, during his first meeting here, once stood. He found that the Greil Mercenaries were already alerted to the news, and he grinned, seeing that the interior wasn't infiltrated yet. This meant that Ike was given time to organize positions.

Near Ike at the end of the temple were Titania, Mist, and Ranulf. All four of the mercenaries were armed, and ready to battle. Laguz soldiers surrounded them, but Ike only knew that this would halt them if they were as strong as before. In one room to the side of him was Rhys, who was going to be used for his staff abilities. He was now better equipped for this battle, as opposed to what he was doing at Nox Castle. In the other room directly to the side of Ike, Soren stood, with his wind tome to be used for long range attacks against the Daein forces. Now, the main forces were prepared. The main forces were in the largest rooms, directly at the sides of the center of the temple where the red carpet began. Gatrie and Shinon were located at the left side of the carpet, while Rolf and Boyd were located at the other side. They were located in such a position that the close-range attackers would be able to fight with support from the marksman. At the front lines, where the rooms ended where the carpet began, there was Mia on the left side. On the right side, there was Oscar, ready to fight with his Silver Lance in hand. The Crimean Royal Knights were also positioned where the carpet began, with each of their horses lined up in a formation to prevent anyone from crossing through without a fight. Ike smirked; he knew that they were ready.

* * *

Micaiah knew that she had to take the interior of the temple, as she felt Ike's presence in the far back of the temple. When she reached the interior, she saw each of the Greil Mercenaries and the Crimean Royal Knights organized in perfect formation. She turned to Sothe worriedly, who gave her a look of reassurance. Then, she turned back, and gave a deep breath.

_So, they prepared in time for us…_ Micaiah thought. Suddenly, a current of cold air hit her, as she turned to the source. Next to her was the man holding the legendary blade of Alondite, the Black Knight. He held the legendary blade that was the sister to Ike's Ragnell firmly, waiting for Micaiah's orders. She felt a wave of reassurance as her knight was there, giving her support in the troubling time. Then, she organized the Dawn Brigade.

Knowing the outcomes of the previous battles against the Greil Mercenaries, she set up her troops accordingly. Edward was to take on the left side of the first room, facing off against Mia once more. The purple-haired trueblade smirked, as she knew that a rematch between the two was imminent. Leonardo was placed in support behind him, as Micaiah knew that they had wonderful chemistry with each other (both on and off the battlefield). She placed Fiona in charge of taking out the Greil Mercenaries' silver knight, Oscar. The blue silver knight knew she had to come back from the loss that she suffered from last time. Micaiah knew that Tauroneo was out directing the battle from outside the temple, so she was forced to put Meg at the front lines to dispatch of Gatrie. Pelleas joined behind her, providing magic support against Shinon's bow. Pelleas had been training under Tauroneo, who had enlisted powerful magic users to teach him. As a result, he was now a powerful archsage, capable of wielding many powerful dark magic tomes. Micaiah also told Nolan to go handle the other team's reaver, Finally, she organized Zihark, Jill, Aran, Laura, Kurthnaga, Nailah, and Rafiel in fighting positions. However, the Black Knight insisted on being close to her, which Micaiah had no choice but to agree with. Finally, the preparations were ready for the battle.

The battle had begun, as the sounds of war rallied about the temple, which used to be a place of peace and worship. Now, it was the sight where many bodies of the laguz would fall, and the start of a new era in bloodshed. Edward rushed forward, jumping up before attacking Mia with Caladbolg. Mia managed to parry swiftly, trying to slice the boy on the shoulder. However, Edward managed to roll backwards, allowing him to dodge the attack. Micaiah looked to her right, and saw Fiona fight intensely with Oscar, with the two lances releasing clangs as they hit against each other. The main group, including her, had begun to move forward. Their main opposition was the Crimean Royal Knights, as they had blocked the way to the Commander, Ike.

"Why do you fight in this pointless war? You're only going to get hurt again like the last one!" Geoffrey said, holding his lance high. Kieran, Makalov, and Astrid readied their weapons as well. Micaiah paid no heed to their words, blocking everything out except the sight of victory that she needed to get to. She equipped her light tome, prepared to speak the ancient language.

"Let the light strike my enemy, so that I may cross the path of destiny!"" Micaiah spoke, as she read the incantations from her Ellight tome. A ball of light formed above Geoffrey, the leader of the Crimean Royal Knights with distinguished blue hair. Multiple tendrils of white light began to encircle the leader, as they struck him repeatedly. Geoffrey winced in pain, but knew he had to keep his defense up for as long as possible. Now, it was his turn to attack. While Micaiah wasn't paying attention, Geoffrey's horse galloped at an alarming rate towards her. Finally, as she turned around at the last moment, she closed her golden eyes, realizing that she would die if the lance hit. As the moments lingered on, Micaiah realized that she was not dead. When she looked up, she received the answer as to why.

The lance was stuck against the Black Knight's Alondite, as it was being parried. With a quick slash, the Black Knight spun his heavy blade around, disarming Geoffrey as the lance clanged when it hit the floor. This put Geoffrey in a very bad position, as he tried to retreat; however, this was futile. Within a matter of moments, the Black Knight took the opportunity to strike in a stunning display of swordplay. The Black Knight managed to position the blade where it would reach through the chinks of Geoffrey's armor, giving a clean swipe of his blade. This caused Geoffrey's breastplate to fall off, and some of his underclothing to tear. Geoffrey winced in pain, as he felt the blade cut some of his chest. He felt blood ooze out of his wounds at an alarming rate. His vision began to darken as the corner of his eyes began to fill with darkness. Geoffrey looked up at the top of the temple, before passing out. Micaiah looked worriedly at the blue-haired silver knight, but the Black Knight caused her to focus on the large scope.

"I did not kill that knight, Maiden. That slash was only enough to incapacitate him for a few weeks."

"Sir Knight, thank you for protecting me…" Micaiah spoke, before seeing a pink-haired gold knight run toward the Black Knight. With the visible danger to the Black Knight present, Micaiah felt a surge of energy as she gathered all of her magic skills to perform a powerful spell.

"Let the light protect my knight, and make the aggressor pay!" Micaiah spoke the words in the ancient language, uttering them with such seriousness. The same ball of light directed at Geoffrey formed over the gold knight, but it was amplified. This blinded the sword knight, as the thicker tendrils began to mercilessly attack the gold knight. When the blinding critical hit had finished, Micaiah could see that the other knight was now passed out as well. The Black Knight turned behind him, and saw the unconscious Makalov. Then, he faced forward, as clearing away Geoffrey and Makalov managed to get them a small spot to break through the Royal Knights. Micaiah and the Black Knight sauntered through the commotion, and ran up the stairs to the next level of the temple. Now, Micaiah could see Ike in clear view, albeit he was far away. Ike focused his gaze on Micaiah and the Black Knight, as he watched the two fight as if a symphony was being conducted; the two fought as if they were notes on a page, all lined up with perfect harmony. With a few quick slashes, and blinding light, an entire flank of laguz was taken out. This left Boyd, Shinon, Gatrie, and Rolf to defend their designated section.

* * *

Edward crossed blades with the trueblade once more, but this time, Leonardo was with him. He managed to slice at the girl's shoulder, causing some blood to stain her clothing. While she recovered from that, Leonardo nocked an arrow, and fired it at her from a long range. This managed to pierce the trueblade's leg, causing her to fall to the ground. Edward saw the moment to strike once more to incapacitate her, and he took it. He quickly slashed at Mia's wrist that held the Wo Dao, as he managed to slice the side of her arms. This caused Mia to yelp in pain, as she released her sword since the pain was too great. She saw blood ooze out of her arm, and felt the arrow stuck in her leg.

_Nngh…not again… _Mia spoke, as she felt her vision darken looking up at the top of the temple. Her eyes slowly closed, rendering her unconscious.

* * *

Arrows were being shot at from both sides, but the Black Knight was quite capable of defending against them. To protect Micaiah, he guarded her blindside, cutting away the arrows with Alondite's ranged attack. Sothe watched as the two performed a chorus of attacks, symphonically dodging and attacking the opponents. He sliced a tiger laguz in the leg, before quickly catching up to Micaiah. He tried to intervene, but he could tell that he was disrupting the two's rhythm.

Eventually, they had managed to avoid enough of the four Greil Mercenaries' attacks to progress further, as they reached the same level as Ike, Titania, Ranulf, and Mist. Near the sides, Micaiah could see that there were two of the archsages, Rhys, and Soren, delivering healing support and magic support from far away. She knew that, in order to defeat Ike and the rest of the mercenaries, she needed to finish them. As if reading her mind, the Black Knight teleported to Rhys, as the man dressed in white cowered. With the blade's property of being unable to kill someone that could not defend themselves, the Black Knight swiped at Rhys' legs, causing the latter to fall onto the ground in a lot of pain. He dropped his staff, and, when he tried to reach it, the Black Knight stepped on the orb, crushing it with his heel. With the broken Physic staff, Rhys knew that he was essentially incapacitated, as he did not have any long-range tomes. The Black Knight then teleported back to Micaiah, who was now watching as Sothe was sent to dispatch Soren.

The green-haired rogue held a silver knife, while aiming for the hole to the other room. He threw the knife at the hole, but only managed to get it stuck in the hole. Soren now knew that Sothe was around him, and quickly read the incantations. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a large ice bolt was thrown at Sothe from the sky, with Sothe managing to get scraped by the ice. He held his cold leg, as he managed to stand up. As he did, however, he saw the Black Knight attack Soren, quickly disarming him and incapacitating him with a few slashes of Alondite. He saw Soren fall to his knees, with his hands on the floor as he felt blood ooze out of the sides of his arms. Then, the Black Knight teleported once again to Micaiah's side, leaving Titania, Ranulf, Mist, and Ike.

* * *

"_Micaiah, the forces have been broken at the front and middle sections! The Greil Mercenaries have been incapacitated with the help of the laguz!" _Micaiah heard Edward shout, as she turned around. She noticed the flooding of the wolves of Hatari into the castle, as the laguz were slaughtered when the wolves were released. Nailah herself was taken down some generals, and now, Micaiah could focus on defeating Ike. It was now her, the Black Knight, Sothe, and Pelleas against the two. However, the events that transpired after were ones that she couldn't predict.

The Black Knight charged after Ike, as the two were engaged in a harsh battle. Micaiah could hear the Black Knight remarking that Ike had grown weaker than when they had last met, since the Black Knight hadn't used all of his power. Micaiah focused on taking down the others, which was not too hard. Suddenly, a white wolf by the name of Nailah rushed by her, and started to viciously bite at Titania. Nailah managed to bite the leg of Titania's horse, causing the red-haired gold knight to fall onto the ground with her horse. She tried to get up, but she knew that she was useless without her horse. An ebony dragon breath crossed by Micaiah next, aimed at Mist. The young girl fell off her horse, as Kurthnaga tried to prevent her from getting too many injuries. Her staff shattered as the orb hit the ground, causing Mist to be incapacitated. Ranulf was now trying to fight Sothe, but the two were engaged in each other to care about anything else.

Micaiah saw the perfect opportunity to strike Ike while he was busy engaged in the fight with the Black Knight. However, before she read the incantation, she was enchanted by the battle of sword that was going on.

* * *

"You've grown weaker since the Ribahn River, son of Gawain…"

"Regardless of my strength, I will win this battle!"

"Your friends are nearly incapacitated. They are getting decimated as we speak."

"I don't care!" Ike said the words, before he could catch them. The Black Knight capitalized on this hesitation, maneuvering his blade to strike the other's hand. While the blade was moving towards Ragnell, the Black Knight initiated another conversation.

"You are not your father's son. Your father would've focused on caring for the injured regardless of victory. You have failed Gawain." Those last words hit Ike where it hurt, as he felt his wrist get scraped. This caused him to drop Ragnell, as the blade penetrated the ground of the temple. Ike held onto his hand, trying to stop the bleeding from his arms to occur. He tried to grip Ragnell, but the Black Knight kicked the blade away from him. However, as he prepared for the finishing blow, he heard a scream that came from the Maiden. He turned around, and saw what had happened.

* * *

Sothe saw the arrow, right before it could hit his mark. He saw Rolf nock the arrow, managing to fire one last one before succumbing to his pain from the wolves. The arrow whizzed by at blurred speeds, aimed straight at Micaiah's heart, and in that moment, Sothe knew.

Micaiah was the most important person to him, but he knew that the feeling wasn't reciprocated. He saw the almost elegant dance the two did, symphonically fighting and killing the laguz with a combination of sword and magic. Sothe saw Micaiah truly smile, as she fought with the Black Knight's protection. The green-haired rogue knew his place, and wished his greatest friend the best of luck. Now, he could see that the Black Knight cared about Micaiah, regardless of the cold, emotional attitude the knight had given off. It almost made Sothe want to forgive him; almost.

He also realized that Micaiah was the true hope of Daein for the war, and that she was the one way that the Senate could be defeated. And in that moment, Sothe knew that what he was about to do was for the good of Daein and for the good of Micaiah.

_Micaiah, please be happy, and bring hope to Daein always…_ Sothe said, jumping forward. He felt his heart rate increase, his breathing increase, and then, it all stopped. The rogue fell to the ground, with an arrow impaling straight into his heart. He was dead before he even hit the ground, and he was motionless. The blood oozed out of his impalement, as the arrow was stuck inside him, all bloodstained at the sharp tip. Micaiah's eyes widened as she saw one of her greatest friends fall to the ground, with an arrow sticking out where his heart would be. She kneeled down, immediately putting her hands on him to heal him with her gift. Micaiah put all her energy into her hands, trying to get something done, to get Sothe _to live_, but she drained herself. She fell to the ground unconscious, lying next to her dead friend.

Pelleas saw this, and was distracted by this, while fighting against Shinon. Meg tried to block the arrow, but it flew at a high enough speed to not reach her in time. The arrow puncture Pelleas from the back, into the heart; unlike Sothe, however, he began to smile. Maybe Daein would receive a better queen in Micaiah…

"I-If there's an afterlife… may A-Ashera forgive me…." Pelleas spoke his last words, stuttering as he did so. He fell on his knees, as blood pooled around him. His dark magic tomes fell out from his cape, and he fell to the floor in finality, dying as the hope of Daein was lifted onto Micaiah's shoulders.

Just then, Micaiah awoke to the sight of the Black Knight using an elixir on her. She was awoken, but remembered why she fell unconscious. She saw Sothe, and Pelleas on the ground. Tears formed in Micaiah's eyes as she realized that Sothe was gone.

Sothe was gone, and there was nothing that she could do about it.

All around, she noticed the assault stop. All the fighting seemed to cease as Ike noticed Micaiah crying. He ordered the laguz to stop, for everything to stop around him. The Dawn Brigade crowded around her, as they realized what happened. Laura began to cry, with Aran comforting her. Leonardo wrapped his hands around his nose and mouth, trying not to cry as Edward held onto him, sobbing uncontrollably. The laguz had stopped, while the Daein soldiers let go of their weapons.

Sothe and Pelleas were dead. It almost seemed as if the event was surreal; Sothe seemed to have the most experience out of all of them, but the arrow had hit him straight in the heart. He never had a chance of living. Pelleas was the king, and now he was dethroned. Micaiah couldn't stop crying, as she tearfully ordered all forces to retreat. Ike did the same, as he saw his former comrade lie dead on the floor. He ordered all of the Greil Mercenaries to retreat, as well as the laguz forces. The Black Knight held the dead prince and rogue, as the Dawn Brigade walked out of the interior of the castle. The laguz cleared a path for them out of respect for a former comrade that had treated them so well. They all walked out, not looking back at any of the soldiers behind them.

* * *

When they had reached the tents, Micaiah, Edward, and Leonardo dug out burial sites. As the two men were lowered into their graves, all of them felt emotional during the funeral. Micaiah still felt hot tears pricking at the corner of his eyes, and she let them fall without resistance. Laura was reading the words of Ashera, as custom for a Daein funeral. However, she couldn't go long without bursting into tears again.

"A-And with this burial…we s-signify that they are now going t-to meet Ashera…" Laura finished, closing her book that was given to her when she became a priest. She held the book against her chest, sobbing as Aran tried to comfort her. Edward was crying on Leonardo's shoulder, while the latter pat the back of the other.

However, none of the reactions could compare to Micaiah. She was done crying; she simply went on her legs, sitting down as if she had given up. Her best friend was now dead, buried deep within the ground at the hands of the other side. Her king was next to him, who was going to resign already after the war; the time had come too fast, however. Micaiah knew that Lady Almedha would be so sorrowful at the death of her son, while the Begnion Senate would rejoice. Thinking about this, she got up, and turned to her friends and the rest of the camp.

"One of these men was my best friend, ever since we were younger. I looked after him, and he did the same for me. He died, protecting me like we always did." Micaiah gathered boxes, and stood on top of them, similar to Pelleas when Daein was first getting liberated. She tried to make her voice as loud as possible, so that the entire camp could hear her speech.

"Sothe was one of the bravest men I knew. He always spoke about Ike, who a lot of you call our enemy. I now know that Ike is not the beast I once thought he was, and that Sothe was never lying about what he said. In fact, it was horrible for me to even doubt him. Ike let us go after seeing his former friend dead on the ground. The laguz cleared a path for us, while the Greil Mercenaries retreated their forces. They know that we do not wish to fight them." Micaiah continued, as more and more Daein soldiers flooded the funeral area. The Dawn Brigade looked up at her, listening the most out of everyone else.

"Pelleas told me that he wished for me to be the Queen of Daein, saying that after the war, he would resign as king. As Queen, I know that my strength is only as powerful as our weakest link. However, together, we make miracles happen. I will be your guiding light in this time of darkness, and I will make sure to serve you all as much as you serve me. We will destroy the blood pact, and end the suffering that Daein has to go through to avoid this war!" With her final words, Micaiah raised a fist in the air. Numerous applause and cheers began from the Daein soldiers, as they rallied by putting their weapons in the air. Though one couldn't see it, the Black Knight was grinning, seeing the Maiden take charge of the situation quickly. It was obvious to see that she was hurting, but one could also see that she wasn't going to make their deaths meaningless. With that, he teleported elsewhere, but near the Daein camp to keep the Maiden safe.

* * *

Edward and Leonardo were getting ready for a night's rest after a tragic battle. They set up the beds wordlessly, as they thought about what had transpired at today's battle. Sothe, one of their best friends, was now dead, because of the Senate forcing Daein to be involved in a war it had no place being in. Eventually, the two had set up everything, and blew out the candles.

No matter what he did, all Edward could do was toss and turn. He couldn't fall asleep, as he thought about what had happened. He felt his heart rate increase, as well as his mind flash to horrible thoughts about each of his friends. Suddenly, it wasn't a game anymore. Sothe's death had proved that. Giving up, Edward got up, and exited the tent. Leonardo heard this, and got out of bed as well.

"Stargazing?" Leonardo asked the brunette, as the blonde saw him sit outside in the grass. The brunette was looking at the stars with his hazel eyes, as if it would distract him from all the troubles that were happening today. Leonardo sat next to him, gripping the other's hand, telling him that he'll support him.

"Sothe's death…"

"Edward…"

"That could happen to any one of us, Leo, at any time!"

"Yes, bu-"

"What if it happens to you?" Edward interrupted. After the question was asked, a long pause of silence passed between the two. Edward couldn't bear thinking about his best friend dying like Sothe did, and he couldn't even imagine him dying before.

"I won't let it happen to me." Edward said, quietly, but loud enough for Leonardo to hear him.

"Ed, how will you know?"

"I won't let it happen to me, because I know how much you're going to hate me for leaving you alone…"

"I wouldn't hate you… I just don't want you to get hurt, or worse… I don't know if I would be able to live without you, Ed…" Leonardo stated, bringing his knees to his head. He felt tears start to prick the corners of his eyes, and he worried that Edward would laugh at him. Instead, he felt the gentle caress of Edward's handon his cheek. Not being used to sensation, Leonardo jumped, but Edward grinned. He adjusted himself to face Leo, who was now sitting cross-legged facing the brunette.

"Leo, I'm going to make sure you live, okay? I will keep you safe… Because, even if the whole world turns against you, I'll be by your side…" Edward grinned, wiping away some of Leonardo's tears. Then, Edward cupped the other's cheeks, pulling them in as they inched closer together. Soon, the distance between them was only a few centimeters.

"I love you…" Edward finally said, before closing the distance and letting his lips make contact with Leo's soft ones. The two kissed ever so innocently, lasting for about a minute, until the need for air caused them to break apart. Edward licked his lips; Leonardo's lips were so sweet, like candy. Leonardo stopped crying, but then he was tackle-hugged by Edward, as they kissed and laughed together through the night.

* * *

AN: Aww, cute EdLeo fluff at the end :3. That's always been one of my couples, especially since their A-Support level is at the peak level of canonicity.


End file.
